New Global Manifesto Calls for an  Overhaul of Social Investment Systems Globally to Benefit People and Planet

Seven-point blueprint urges the social finance sector, including investors, funders and policymakers, to fix a structural mismatch between finance and mission-driven social enterprises.

Glasgow, 23.09.2026 The Social Enterprise World Forum (SEWF) today launches the Social Investment Manifesto, a global call to action for an overhaul of social finance systems to enable mission-locked social enterprises to access suitable finance to reach their potential. 

According to World Economic Forum and Schwab Foundation research, a global study in which SEWF was a contributing partner, over 10 million social enterprises operate worldwide today. The Manifesto, developed through a global consultation process, demonstrates that the barrier holding back this scale of enterprise is not a lack of finance but access to suitable finance. Current financial systems, the report finds, remain structurally mismatched to the needs of mission-locked social enterprises (businesses that prioritise people and planet over profit),  leaving a global movement of this size without access to finance to match its potential.

“The potential of social enterprise to improve wellbeing for people and planet is extraordinary. “ said Gerry Higgins, Founder and Managing Director, SEWF. “Access to suitable finance determines whether we realise it.” 

A structural mismatch, not a funding gap

The Manifesto’s central argument is that mission-locked social enterprises are routinely excluded from both mainstream investment and traditional philanthropy because neither is designed for hybrid value creation: ventures that prioritise social and environmental return while generating income. The result is a system of isolated, fragmented interventions rather than coordinated infrastructure capable of providing finance to enterprises that could use it for genuine impact. 

“I am delighted to see the launch of the SEWF Social Investment Manifesto. The Manifesto offers a valuable opportunity for stakeholders to come together around clear recommendations and drive the evolution of the social investment market forward globally over the coming years. With deliberate, collaborative action, we can advance social investment and, in turn, the scale of social impact.” – Eoghan Mackie, CEO, The Challenges Group 

Seven recommendations for systemic change

The Manifesto sets out seven recommendations for investors, governments, intermediaries and social enterprises themselves to move from isolated finance to coordinated, system-wide infrastructure:

1. Distinguish and prioritise mission-locked models
2. Design and implement blended finance models
3. Build foundational readiness and resilience
4. Activate supportive policy levers
5. Champion community wealth building
6. Ensure transparent and values-aligned practice
7. Orchestrate system-wide infrastructure design rather than isolated finance infrastructure

Taken together, the recommendations form a blueprint to unlock sustainable growth for people, planet and prosperity, one that depends on investors, governments, intermediaries and social enterprises coordinating rather than acting in isolation.

An underfunded asset class, not a high-risk one

The Manifesto illustrates how impact investors may be overlooking an asset class where the barrier is access to suitable finance, not the underlying merit of the enterprises themselves. For policymakers, funding access is framed as a lever already within reach, one that can be pulled through procurement rules, tax policy and public guarantees, rather than requiring new spending commitments. 

“As economies falter, the climate crisis deepens and conflict reshapes the world, standing up for people and planet is no longer optional. It’s time to frame social investment as core economic infrastructure, rather than a side initiative. This Manifesto sets out what this shift would take” said Manifesto author Hélène Malandain, Pocketknife. 

No single actor can close this gap alone. If the social finance ecosystem, including investors, funders, governments, intermediaries and  social enterprises, worked together, rather than in isolation, the barriers identified in the Manifesto could be addressed at scale. 

The full Manifesto, along with a summary of key findings and supporting data, is available at https://sewfonline.com/policy/social-investment-manifesto/

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